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Have You Heard These Cool Tooth Facts?

Posted November 11, 2016.

At Dana Dental Arts Michael Dana and our team want our patients in Spearfish, South Dakota, to know just how important their smile is. Your smile consists of several parts working together–teeth, gums, cheeks, tongue, throat, and saliva production all make up your healthy smile. Here are some cool tooth facts to help you appreciate your teeth every single day:

— Tooth enamel is the hardest substance in your body.— Your teeth consist of calcium, mineral salts, and phosphorus.— Your teeth begin to form even before you are born, and erupt between 6-12 months.— Your teeth break down the food you eat.— Your tooth prints are like fingerprints–they are unique to you.— Your baby teeth won’t fall out unless there is an adult tooth ready to replace it.— One-third of each tooth lies beneath the gumline, so you are only seeing 2/3 of your tooth’s size.— Once a tooth has been knocked out of the mouth it will start to die within 15 minutes. You can prolong its life by putting it in milk or in your mouth and getting to the dentist as quickly as possible.— Sports injuries make up about 5 million knocked out teeth each year, so wear a mouth guard to protect those chompers.— If you don’t take the time to floss your pearly whites, 40% of your tooth surfaces are not getting cleaned.— If you are right-handed, you tend to chew on the right side of your mouth. Ditto for the left.— Dental plaque has more than 300 types of bacteria in it, which is why you want to remove it daily by brushing and flossing.— Your smile produces over 25,000 quarts of saliva in the average lifetime and is essential to a healthy mouth.— Most adults have 32 teeth, in comparison, snails have 25 teeth…on their tongues!

This Thanksgiving, we hope these cool facts inspire you to want to take good care of your teeth every single day! If you have any questions about your oral health or want to schedule your next dental check-up, please call our Dana Dental Arts team in Spearfish, South Dakota today at 605.642.7727.